Letter to the Editor: Hospital must be inspected

For five years until 2008, I was chairman of Croydon Mayday NHS Trust PPI Forum, a Quasi legal body which had almost unfettered authority to visit unannounced and carry out inspections.

We were made up of about 10 persons, one of whom had been an very senior nurse both here and in the US.

We also had a scientist who had worked in the NHS and other not so qualified persons. After a visit we had to write a formal report – one copy to the trust and eventually one went on the web.

The trust was not always thrilled about this, but our visits to accident and emergency, wards & outpatients were done fairly and without bias.

We thought we did a pretty good job. We only asked two things; Would I like to be a patient? and would I like my loved-one to be a patient?

However, the last Government abolished us, we suspected because of pressure by the-then NHS managers?

We were replaced by Link a toothless body who I learned, by a Freedom of Information request, carried out no more than four inspections in three years.

However, this Conservative Government has not been much better.

While we, the PPI forum, carried out more than 10 inspections per year, the Care Quality Commission mangers once told me that they have not the staff to inspect, unless there are deaths etc more than every three years or so.

I am not sure who has oversight of Croydon University Hospital.

Is it Councillor Maggie Mansell’s health and wellbeing board, which I attend and often ask questions?

It is not the remit I understand of the Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group, which only really deal with GPs pharmacist and, I believe, dentists.

I know and respect Coun Mansell and MP Gavin Barwell, I ask that they take urgent care to ensure no one else walks around holding their gut in.

We are in 2015, not World War One in 1914. But would their field hospitals serve those they dealt with better than Croydon University Hospital et al?

PETER HOWARD

Farm Drive Shirley

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